Clutching a sizable trophy as he emerged from a happy Susquehanna Twp. locker room late Sunday afternoon, usually stoic Gabe Mack had several legit reasons for cracking a quick grin or two as he bounced through the spacious hallways at Central Dauphin High School.

Not only had the 5-9 junior guard just claimed most valuable player honors following Susquehanna’s dustup with a really good Abington Heights outfit, but Mack’s work at both ends of the floor played a heavy role in the Indians’ 56-49 victory over the perennial District 2 hammer.

Oh, by the way, Abington Heights was plugged in at No. 5 -- five lofty rungs higher than Susquehanna -- when last week’s version of The Patriot-News’ state-wide PIAA Class AAA rankings became public knowledge.

Nice win?

“They were fifth in the state,” said 6-6, 240-pound forward Savalas Pope, who scored six points and yanked down 11 rebounds. “This is a big win.”

Mack pocketed 12 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out a couple of assists — he also uncorked his own 10-0 run during a critical stretch of the third quarter — Nehemiah “Bud” Mack checked in with 13 points and Joe Marshall wound up with 10 as the Indians (14-1) won their fourth in a row.

So when Abington Heights wheeled to a blistering 15-3 advantage on the 6-3, 200-pound Show’s 15-foot pull-up with just under a minute left in the opening quarter, Vince Rogers’ Tribe looked bewildered by the Comets’ size and physical power — and a puzzling 2-3 matchup zone.

“Kept us off balance,” Rogers said.

Several minutes later, after opening the second quarter with a 10-0 salvo triggered by suddenly energized defensive pressure, Susquehanna trailed by just a deuce (17-15), had its feet firmly on the floor and was ready to compete with Abington Heights’ assortment of bigs in the paint.

“We were trying to figure out how to attack [that zone] and we weren’t talking on defense,” Gabe Mack said of the Indians’ pedestrian start. “Once the second quarter started, our defensive intensity boosted our offense and everything started falling. Our shots started to go down.”

“They started trapping,” Bianchi said. “We didn’t take care of the ball. We had some turnovers that they converted into points. And if they don’t score, then they can’t press.”

The Indians also were ready to go after Show — a splendid combo guard whose well-rounded repertoire possesses a lethal blend of power and finesse. Helps explain why Bucknell stopped by the Play-by-Play Classics showcase to take yet another look at the combustible Comet.

Show had 12 of his 20 points in the first half, but with extensive ball-handling duties against Susquehanna’s aggressive traps and man also part of his lengthy job description fatigue had to creep into his sturdy body so his pops from the perimeter after the break weren’t as effective.

Rogers also sent at least four players after Show, as Bud Mack, Takhi Turner, Jordan Millberry and Marshall provided a series of different looks to the talented junior.

“Playing against Bud, I know he’s a good defender,” Gabe Mack said.

“Takhi and Jordan, they’re two good defenders, too. [Show] is probably the best player we’ve played all year, so we had to try to contain him as much as we could. [All those guys] stayed on top of him.”

“That was the game plan,” Rogers admitted. “On the chalkboard, I said, ‘Bud, Takhi, probably Joe will match up with him a little.’ We wanted to give him different looks, plus wear him down.”

And it worked ... eventually.

“I think they wore us down,” Bianchi said. “We had trouble with Show. How much more can he do? ... He has to bring the ball up to get us into the offense. He’s gotta score. He’s gotta play defense. He’s the only one who took a charge. He just wore down at the end.

“We’re just not as deep.”

Although Susquehanna continued to trail 23-19 at the break, the Tribe had made up some needed ground and found a way to compete against the biggest, most-physical side they’ve met thus far.

Once Gabe Mack knocked down a pull-up from the foul line with just over five minutes left in the third, Susquehanna’s diminutive lead guard needed about 90 seconds to leave his stamp on the game. Two treys followed — a Jonas Page screen gave him room on No. 1 — as the Indians led 32-27.

“All year I’ve been waiting for Gabe to kinda get going,” Rogers said. “He picked a perfect game to really take his game to the next level. ... What I told him was, ‘That was all the work you put in in the gym and over the summer, and all the shots you get up.’ It proved dividends tonight.”

Although Mack capped his personal salvo with a pair of free throws, Abington Heights hitched it up behind seven straight points from the 6-5 Bamford and stormed ahead by four (38-34).

Back and forth it went until Page sank a deep dart from the left wing off a Gabe Mack skip pass and Bud Mack followed with a pair of free throws. Suddenly, Susquehanna led 48-44.

And while Bianchi’s dogged Comets edged to within a single point on Jamie Egan’s conventional three-point play with 4:35 left, they had a chance to step back in front when Kevin Elwell stepped to the line for a crucial one-and-one — but missed the front end and Susquehanna rebounded.

Moments later, a Page finish gave the Indians a 50-47 lead.

While Abington Heights never drew closer, Susquehanna put a capper on its notable victory and closed out a productive week that also included victories over Mechanicsburg, Trinity and Bishop McDevitt by getting two freebies apiece in the final seconds from Gabe Mack and Millberry.

“I honestly think this goes back to that loss [to Palmyra on Jan. 4],” Gabe Mack said. “When we lost, we put a chip on our shoulder and we just don’t want to [go through that]. So we went hard in practice.

“Our defense has been great for the last week,” Mack added. “And McDevitt was the same way. Our defense has been great ever since, ever since the loss.”

“From a coaching aspect, I couldn’t ask any more from these kids,” Rogers said, referring to his group's sparkling 4-0 week.

Soon, they were handing out MVP trophies following a game that might have doubled as a state tournament preview. Even if it the calendar reads mid-January. And even if there’s plenty left to navigate.

Still feels mighty good to be recognized after toppling a quality opponent.

“I’m glad he stepped up,” Pope said of Gabe Mack, who was standing alongside. “He made things really exciting in the second half.”

“I told him, ‘Big players play big in big games and [Gabe] did that tonight.’¤” Rogers said. “The Mack brothers did a terrific job tonight, a terrific job. And they feed off each other.”